Field guide · Compliance

Lost your PTO's EIN? How to get it back this week

The number is findable, the replacement letter is one phone call, and the horror stories are avoidable — a recovery guide for the board that inherited a filing cabinet of nothing.

The short answer: your EIN is probably already written down somewhere you can reach — bank paperwork, a past 990 (public, searchable), your state charity registration, an old W-9. If it's truly gone, an officer calls the IRS Business & Specialty Tax Line at 800-829-4933 (Mon–Fri, 7am–7pm local) and requests a 147C letter — the official replacement for the lost assignment letter. They verify you, then fax it same-call or mail it in ~two weeks. Do not apply for a new EIN: a second number creates a mess that takes far longer to fix than the first problem.

First, the ten-minute hunt

The EIN appears on more documents than boards expect. Check, in order of likelihood:

  • The bank. The account was opened with the EIN; any current signer can ask the branch to read it back.
  • Past 990 filings — these are public. Search the group's name in the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search (apps.irs.gov/app/eos) or on Candid/GuideStar. If the group ever filed, the EIN is on the face of the filing. This also tells you your exact legal name of record — useful for every other verification you'll ever do.
  • The paper trail: the original CP 575 assignment letter, the IRS determination letter, state charity registration, insurance application, or a W-9 the group gave a sponsor or school district.
  • Other people's records: the school bookkeeper, the district office, your state PTA if chartered, prior treasurers — someone has an old form with the number on it.
  • Nonprofit programs you joined: Google for Nonprofits, Walmart Spark Good, Amazon — the EIN is in the account profile.

The one call that replaces the letter

Knowing the number is often not enough — banks and verification programs want the letter. The replacement is the 147C, and only a phone call gets it:

  • Who calls: someone authorized to act for the organization — a current officer. Banks' "authorized person" and the IRS's are the same idea: you're on the org's records or can answer for them.
  • The number: 800-829-4933, the Business & Specialty Tax Line. 7am–7pm your local time, Monday–Friday. Call early in the morning; hold times balloon after 10am.
  • What they'll verify: the organization's legal name, the address on file (which may be a treasurer's home from 2011 — bring every address you can think of), and your name and title.
  • Delivery: if you're near a fax (an online fax number works), they send the 147C during the call. Otherwise it mails to the address of record in about two weeks — and if that address is stale, ask about updating it (Form 8822-B is the address-change form).

A script for the call, so nothing gets forgotten while you're on hold:

"Hi — I'm calling to request a 147C letter for a nonprofit organization. I'm the [role] of [legal name], a parent-teacher organization in [city, state]. We've lost our original EIN assignment letter and need the verification letter for [the bank / nonprofit program verification]. [Have ready: the EIN if you found it · the group's possible legal names · every address the group may have used · your name and title · a fax number if you have one] While I have you — can you confirm the exact legal name and address you have on record for us, and whether our filing status shows as current?"

That last question is free and valuable: it catches name mismatches (the reason half of nonprofit verifications fail) and surfaces the next problem before it surfaces you.

The bigger scare: is your exempt status even active?

Groups that lost their EIN letter usually also skipped some annual filings — and three consecutive missed 990s means automatic revocation of tax-exempt status. While you're in the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search, check the auto-revocation list for your group.

  • Still listed, status fine: exhale, file this year's 990-N e-postcard (ten minutes, free, due November 15 for a June 30 fiscal year), and put the date on the calendar forever.
  • Revoked: reinstatement runs through Form 1023 or 1023-EZ. Smaller groups revoked for the first time can often use the streamlined retroactive path if they apply within 15 months of revocation. It's recoverable paperwork — but start now, because donations and nonprofit programs hinge on it.

Never again: where the EIN lives from now on

  • The handoff binder — the physical one that changes hands at transition, with the 147C/CP 575, determination letter, and bylaws.
  • The shared drive — owned by the organization, not someone's personal account.
  • The secretary's records — one officer explicitly owns "the paperwork exists."

The EIN isn't a secret (it's on public filings) — availability is the whole game. Groups don't lose their EIN in a fire; they lose it at officer turnover. Fix the turnover and you've fixed the EIN.

FAQ

Can I just apply for a new EIN instead?

No. The old number still holds your bank account, filing history, and exempt status; a second EIN forks your identity and creates months of untangling. Recover the original with a 147C.

Is there any online way to get the 147C?

No — phone only. Wear the hold time; call at 7am.

Does the 147C prove we're tax-exempt?

No — it verifies the EIN and name of record. Exempt status is the determination letter (or your parent organization's group exemption). Different letter, same binder.

The IRS has an address from three boards ago. Is that a problem?

Only until you fix it — file Form 8822-B to change the address of record, and consider a PO box or the school's address so it never goes stale again.

This is a handoff problem wearing an IRS costume

The Year Wheel schedules the paperwork check every July — so the next board never plays EIN detective.

See July in the Year Wheel

One useful email a month

One useful email a month — what your board should be doing right now. Unsubscribe anytime.